Repairing and Refinishing Mid Century Chairs From A Church Sale | Furniture Restoration

In this video I repair and refinish a pair of mid century chairs. I bought the chairs at a church sale.
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[@jill552]

I love mid century dining chairs. Those Drexel Declaration chairs look lovely. Beautiful job. I, also, want to say I love your video style with clear narration and no music.

[@waterbitten]

The lack of music is highly appreciated! +1

[@A-Minor-Music]

I agree

[@stoveboltlvr3798]

I hate music blasting in videos too. It ruins them!

[@jeanniealford4234]

I agree!!!!!!!

[@NewHopeAudio]

It’s cherry on top of incredible work!

[@toddylu6869]

I got so tickled..."I got lucky at a chursch sale recently"...my mind is always in a gutter somewhere....so I continued to watch your great video.

[@traceyrussell-kowalski5916]

Wow with just a little TLC they look Beautiful 👍

[@cynthiafisher9907]

These are beautiful chairs, I love that you didn’t change the upholstery.

[@Porkcfish]

“I got lucky at a church sale, recently." That meant something completely different to me.

[@rockdinosaur8619]

Underrated intro - a little sly innuendo there

[@loisbolton1800]

😉

[@sherrylsews7468]

Whew, I'm not the only one... 😏

[@cdd4248]

Hahahaha! I thought the same!

[@cherylowilley6007]

Yeah. I like the backs better with the gel stain. Really good.

[@marciabradley7660]

I found 4 R-way chairs at $5 each last spring that have curved backs and seats. I’m still excited about that find.

[@ReconstructingEmily]

You had me with the opener! Awesome chairs. Thank you for sharing the restoration! I will chairish this for a while!

[@tlemon1950]

Simply and skillfully done, great work.

[@damonrao6625]

What a nice surprise to wake up to on a Monday morning. Thank you so much for the inspiration and guidance through all my lockdown projects here in Melbourne. (Broken dowels and repairing chair frames are two of my most recent challenges also.) Great stuff Dasher.

[@privatehand]

Hard to believe those vinyl seats remained in such great condition after all these years.

[@elnasell5113]

They look great !

[@shush9248]

This was another lovely walk-through of how you rehab these pieces. I don't know if I asked before, but asking now: Can you say how long each rehab took from the day you started, to completion, please - so that we can have an idea of the time involved. I'm sure life gets in the way, and sometimes it takes longer than anticipated. There definitely has to be a difference in the real contact hours spent working on them, and the actual time-period that it's spread out over. Would you mind sharing either, or both, please? Thank you🙏🏻😊

[@ibaber]

I also think it would be useful to know the time it took to complete a piece.

[@heyricksander]

I had exactly this same set of chairs I bought in 1995 and lost in a fire 20 years later.

[@janetmario]

WOW!! Well done!

[@markwellington1254]

Thanks for the video! I know it doesn't come across like your voice but that is a great part of these videos besides the wood mastery.

[@ricks.4767]

Beautiful!

[@seeingthepattern]

Another great video. More gentle teaching. For myself, I would have left the seat backs the paler colour.

[@thomasdavis5514]

I really appreciate this video. I purchased a set of five of these exact chairs to go with my Drexel Declaration table. A couple of them need repairs to tired joints so it was great to see how they go together before I start on mine.

[@ahujeffrey]

Great intuition. A wonderful find. Those chairs, as lovely as they were originally, are at least 50 times the value after your meticulous and attentive details. A pleasure to observe!

[@bluecurlygirl]

Beautiful job. They'll serve a purpose now for many years to come. Well done.

[@pou618]

Beautiful. Amazing the upholstery was in such great shape.

[@patrick070]

i love your videos. I learn something every time, and they are so relaxing to watch and listen to. Thanks!

[@vision7559]

Absolutely beautiful. I really love the colour of the seats. 👏👏

[@sznuw]

they look beautiful! restored with such love and dedication as always. great video, cheers!

[@jimdee5003]

Good tips 👍

[@randyattwood]

Once again, great job.

[@jenniferlawrence8533]

Really enjoyed watching you recover the beautiful furniture. Hope you have a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year!

[@traceyrice]

Interesting chairs. Nice job! 💜

[@52memor]

GREAT !!!!

[@lsimpson50]

beautiful restoration.

[@Boomerinthewild62]

The chairs came out beautiful. I think I would have replaced the green vinyl seats, though! 😂

[@stoveboltlvr3798]

Invest in quality and you can't go wrong. Those are well made chairs and worth $5 all day long. I'm sure they're worth more just for the seats being in good condition. Now they look super!

[@krista2216]

I love these chairs. A lot of new stuff these days are... cookie cutter punch outs, it feels. Boring, no character. These have a lot of character, as well as being truly beautiful wood.

[@sparkykingheat]

I’ve never heard the word “dowel” so many times before. I now dream in dowels. I can taste the dowels. I have become one with the dowels. I am the dowel.

[@Wutzibutzi100]

I have no glue what you’re talking about. 😉

[@cathyswope5174]

Holding out on us with a summer redo 😉

[@DashnerDesignRestoration]

I did start this one back in the summer but got sidetracked with other things along the way.

[@markphillips6154]

Nice!!!! Did you ever wash them

[@TheTriptamineDream]

"I got lucky at a church sale." Not something I often hear.

[@brandierae]

Did you get that new dowel trick from Tom Johnson? I saw him do that the other day.

[@philurbanski]

Am I the only person who abhors veneer? It reminds me of the faux wood stickers on old station wagons.

[@farhorizons3901]

3:04 I suspect the joint cracked because the glue on the other joint failed first, thus putting all the pressure on the one joint and it broke at the weakest point which was across the dowels. Significantly, the glue on the broken joint did not fail.

[@ScottK]

Just curious, what brush-on glue do you use? It looked like you were dipping into a quart can of something.

[@DashnerDesignRestoration]

It's just Titebond II. I put a little bit on top of a can to dip my brush in.

[@A-Minor-Music]

How did you refresh the finish on the chair frames, & did you cover any scratches? If you want to sell them, what will be the asking price?

[@dlarson1965]

I just saw two of these chairs on ebay go for $950.00

[@sexefamily3034]

Still waiting for a virtual tour of your home showcasing all your finished pieces .... Love your channel!!!

[@ogCANICA]

First

[@ASMROW]

Why so serious? You fixing a chair. Chill out

[@DashnerDesignRestoration]

This is serious business.

[@bookofdust]

In my family there’s a collection of what we refer to as “Church Chairs.” They came from my grandmother’s Methodist church and were sold off to parishioners when the church could finally afford beautifully carved pews. Having 8 children, my grandmother bought quite a few and they were handed down in the family. They are ladder back chairs and we’ve had to replace the canning seats every couple of decades, but otherwise the chair’s integrity have never been a problem, nor have they ever needed to be stripped and resurfaced, the honey finish just mellows and becomes warmer. They were made in Lebanon County Pennsylvania and most likely created by local Mennonites or Amish at the time and are over 100 years old at this point.They are just beautiful and functional objects, but every time I look at them they give me great joy.

[@generatorjohn4537]

Nice story. Thanks

[@A-Minor-Music]

I am from Lancaster Co. PA, so am familiar with the beautiful work of the Amish & Mennonite carpentry shops. My parents also had some vintage wooden chairs from the area. Sadly they were all donated/sold when my dad sold his house.

[@bren70ssss94]

Here in rural ireland on a chilly afternoon with the woodstove lit enjoying your video as ever , thank you :)

[@DashnerDesignRestoration]

Thank you for watching.

[@imhonestlyjustsoconfused]

You're living my dream right now. I hope you have found peace with life and have none of the chaos that urban areas will throw at you.

[@waterbitten]

Living the dream! 👌🏾

[@cdd4248]

Sounds Lovely!

[@halaissa3430]

My friends daughter brought me an antique spice rack that needed some fixing , i glues the loose parts filled the voids with wood filler , sanded it and preparing to stain it, i learned it all from your videos , thank you 😊

[@silverchickadee4130]

I have these chairs and the dining table. They are in great shape. I’m hoping to come across four more chairs someday as the table easily seats ten with the extensions. It was awesome to see how to repair these if the need arises.

[@jill552]

SilverChicadee, lucky for you. A beautiful line from Drexel.

[@AP20680]

How funny that this kind of mid century scandi style is highly desirable again today.

[@toddylu6869]

Oh, before I forget. I need to thank you...I decided to stain a table top in GF Gel Stain the other day. I had never stained anything in my life. I have been watching your videos and some others which gave me the confidence to strip it, sand it, pre-condition it, then stain it. I then applied three light layers of Shellac to prevent any lifting I had heard could happen with gel stain. So this was completed and I let the table rest for a couple of weeks. I wanted to be sure I could use Poly over Shellac...because I am such a novice. OK, I am getting to the thank you part. ...So I applied the first layer with a foam brush..it was ok, then I remembered your videos and how much you stain and work with small pieces of folded rags or towels. So I got an old t-shirt, folded a small piece and applied the second Poly coat. It went on so smooth and I had much more control over the saturation and pressure during the application. So THANK YOU, THANK YOU for that... you should know how and when you help others. These chairs are adorable and I am so glad you left them green. Thank you for the instructions you give. I am a nurse and the last two years have been "different". I have taken up some projects around our house. My husband wants me to buy furniture but I have chosen to up-cycle what I have. Again, many thanks for the videos....I have learned so much!

[@Thepourdeuxchanson]

You are a nurse. Thank you.

[@cpearson7372]

YES! I wanted to thank him, for leaving the green seat covers, too. Preserving their history, leaves such a great feeling of relief.

[@cdd4248]

I am right behind you...just purchased the basics and going to give it a go! I am nervous and feel like I am preparing to go skydiving or something...LOL

[@FixingFurniture]

Interesting project. I’m curious to know if you’d be interested in collaborating on a video like I’ve done with Tom Johnston. Scott from Fixing Furniture

[@thart6103]

I’ve been looking forward to this video ever since I saw on IG that you purchased these chairs. I just inherited 4 of these same exact 1960’s Drexel Declaration chairs. So thank you for this video. They’re beautiful!

[@slanginnoodles9865]

Fabulous. I love that you just gave them a tighten up but didn't mess with them too much

[@ldianehigley3287]

My mother has walnut chairs similar to these that she has had since the 60's. You made these beautiful again! Love watching you work.

[@EchoamysDoghouse]

They look great. I liked how you went through removing the dowels. Great find.

[@JamesDeese]

Because of your channel I have been on a tear to try and save a lot my families old furniture from the junk pile.

[@rcdoodles6214]

A beautiful restoration. Your video presentations are a joy to watch. It’s amazing to watch a master woodworker quietly (love not having music) bring second lives to so many lovely wood pieces. The seats on these chairs are totally mcm, love the color! Thank you for sharing your expertise with us.

[@nowvoyagerNE]

i realize it would be an invasion of your privacy, but i think about how nice it would be to see how you use these pieces in your own home. thank you for this relaxing video. *:-)*

[@holton345]

I think he sells the vast majority of these pieces.

[@DashnerDesignRestoration]

I actually keep most of them. I should sell some but I’m a terrible salesman.

[@holton345]

@@DashnerDesignRestoration Well, I guessed, but I guessed incorrectly.

[@nowvoyagerNE]

@@DashnerDesignRestoration : i imagine you are a bit biased when you choose something to restore...biased in your attraction to the piece of furniture in the first place, and then biased in favor of keeping it when it is done. i see nothing wrong with that! *:-D*

[@ninoskae]

I WISH he would sell since I’m in his neck of the woods but alas he does NOT 😞

[@sauronthedarklordofmordor2990]

I'd like you to make an in-depth video about wood pests, I tried to repair a termite-infested nightstand and it was almost impossible. So, could you explain how to protect wood before and after an infestation of insects such as termites, what poison to use? salt water works? how to apply it? what woods resist pests? What finishes work best to protect wood? How do you keep termites away from your workshop? It would be very interesting and useful; I hope you can read this comment.

[@danielpreilly77]

Couple of beauties, really like the design of these and I’m amazed how the pale lime seat upholstery has stood the test of time. Turned out great.

[@jgorry69]

I find this so relaxing and I am a restorer of paintings and furniture for 35 years. Every day I learn. Keep up the content!!! Irish Australian

[@heyhope326]

You have great taste 👌👌

[@soofihasan]

Beautiful work as always. God bless,

[@sherrygiambalvo2288]

I have this Declaration dining set. It was my parents from the 50's. It no longer has the original finish, but I just love it. My mom hated it, but she hates anything from that era. Said she lived though it once, doesn't want to again. Anyway, they could only afford four chairs when they bought it. A few years ago I was lucky enough to find the two captain's chair to go with it. They did not cost me $5, much more than that! I wish I Iived near you, because my set needs this type of restoration. I loved seeing these beautiful chairs brought back to life! 💕

[@cherylmoss3632]

Thank you..no music blasting our senses and ears.

[@danjrash]

Love your work, would love to learn some of the costs involved with restorations and sales if you are so inclined to make such a video? All the best!

[@angelabstractart6168]

Thank you for another great video, good close up shots and solid explanation. I've a set of rose back chairs that need some serious love, they were my grandmothers. Probably from the 40s, I would love to have someone as talented and mindful as you to redo them.

[@kellywilliams5112]

Beautiful hand work on those Drexels.. I loved that you restored them and didn't paint and recover.. they are lovely.

[@WabiSabi1959]

Growing up, Declaration by Drexel designed by Kipp Stewart and Stewart MacDougall was our family dining set. We had the hutch and lowboy as well as the table, 6 chairs, and 2 captains chairs with arms. They originally had off-white Naugahyde seats to match the porcelain knobs on the case goods. 1st Dibs had a set of 2 for sale at $1400.00 Great find and great job! They should be stamped on the bottom with the lot# and date of manufacture.

[@cathys949]

I have a thing about chairs. I would own probably 50 by now if I bought every one I liked at flea markets! Great video!

[@sarahm6945]

How can you tell if you have veneer? I recently bought a set of DUX dining chairs (figured that out after research) and the back rest is supposed to be veneer and the rest of the chair is beech. I'm trying to refinish these myself, but I'm new to all this. Thanks for any input you can give me!

[@margeryk000]

Thanks for sharing another great video. You have done another wonderful job with these beautiful chairs. ATB : )

[@DashnerDesignRestoration]

Thank you.

[@karldunne5595]

I'd like to restore an old pair of chairs like that, - and maybe upgrade with leather for the seats 🧐🙂.....(call it - "Occasional furniture Blitz"....where you do a extra mile!!🙂)... cheers,.

[@richewilson6394]

OMG I GOT 3 OF THESE!!! IF U WANT THEM IM IN MONTANA. I'm also redoing just the back rest, I gotten done is sanding the back rest facing the seat.

[@JanxAngel]

I recognized these chairs immediately. My grandparents had 8 of them, the dining table, the large coffee table, the sofa, and the hi-fi stereo. All the pieces were still in near perfect shape when they passed and were sold to a dealer. Except the hi-fi which I have in my living room since the dealer didn't want it.

[@alittlebitofjessica]

Wow, chairs do take more work than it appears. Now I feel intimidated to fix the bento wood chair I have and can’t use because it’s so old and rackety.

[@lyndacarter5090]

Do you take donations? We both live in the same cities, so it would be easy for you to pick it up? I ‘rescued’ a wooden rocking chair since my daughter always said she wanted one. She doesn’t want this one. It seems really sturdy, but needs some refinishing, and a bit of repair to the edge of the rocker leg. Let me know, so this chair can be passed along. Thank you.

[@Cradley684]

Nice job again Dashner they look good, have a nice day & Saty Safe !!!. Brian UK !!!.

[@1jmass]

Beautiful job. It must be a little scary to take furniture pieces apart. You have to be sure to keep track of which screws etc. go where. Luckily you are very good at what you do.

[@michellepetersen5121]

The chairs turned out great and I agree with the darkening of the backrest. Perfect addition to the chair🌟🌟

[@anonymousmedusa]

Nice! I've been getting into midcentury furniture though my husband dislikes it.

[@rayscrafield2106]

Beautiful work. You got a real steal on those chairs. I never find anything like that. Darn!

[@evysaurusrex]

I'm refinishing a set of mid century dining chairs and as I'm sanding, the wood appears to be weeping. Is this sap? Is this common? How do I make it stop so I can move on with the rest of the process?

[@randyattwood]

In any of your videos have you repaired a damaged polyurethane finish? I have a teak table with such a finish and it needs some areas of repair and I have no idea how to go about it and was hoping one of your projects might give me some guidance.

[@loismaddux4800]

I love your work and your videos! Maybe you should put a note on the items you are not keeping for personal use to IM you if someone would want to purchase the item. Just a thought.

[@tomclarke6475]

They make a strap clamp for picture frames that doesn't use hooks. It doesn't dent the wood because of the hooks and has more even pressure.

[@heyricksander]

I just found these for $500 A PIECE on ebay. :)

[@sarahrenfrow9795]

Lovely. Enjoyed. Thanks for sharing.

[@neighborboys24]

How would you recommend raising an old desk 7 inches to reach counter top for use as a kitchen island

[@pattylevasseur4041]

every video i see you do...amazes me to no end thank you soo much for every piece you save;];];]

[@gsinghacg]

Love your videos. Could you consider doing before and after shots?

[@chefbillybaroo2056]

Nice!

[@ladyluck5248]

How do you know what finishing coats to use as you use so many different ones ?

[@jd9351]

Did you change the upholstery? It looks newer after the refinishing.

[@DashnerDesignRestoration]

I just cleaned it.

[@jd9351]

@@DashnerDesignRestoration Sometimes that's all it takes. 😀👍

[@MrPhotodoc]

I love church rummage sales. Always the best deals in town.

[@daisyl8783]

Hello, Good Morning 🙏 🌄 🌞🌼🌞🌼🙏💛🧡💛🧡💛

[@DashnerDesignRestoration]

Good Morning

[@danai5985]

This is like therapy every time 😍